Annotating “La bella vita” and Seeing Beauty in my Community

John Armstrong, a philosopher, wrote the essay “La bella vita”. He stated  “To regard beauty as a luxury adornment or a social signifier was to miss the true potential of the experience.” He is inferring that people are getting these “beautiful” items for social status and it isn’t needed; it is considered a luxury item. You see more and more people getting luxurious items because their friend gets one and it will make them more popular. People are looking at the item as a boost to there social status and not paying attention to its real worth. Friedrich Schiller, a German dramatist and poet, says, “On the one hand, there is the ‘sense’ drive which lives in the moment and seeks immediate gratification.” He then says “The second drive identified by Schiller was the ‘form’ drive: the inner demand for coherence over time, for abstract understanding and rational order.” He believes there are two ways to enjoy beauty and the people that are buying the items as a “social signifier” are doing for the “sense” aspect of beauty. It makes the people feel happy because their social status is increased because they are considered “cool” for having it. They aren’t realizing what the luxurious adornment can do. They see it for the outside and not for the inside.

I look at beauty as happiness and how it looks. If makes me happy, I think it is beautiful. If the sound of a song or the lyrics of the song is really breathtaking, I see it as beautiful. In football, if I see a play that looked really nice, I consider it beautiful. My football community might look like a bunch of tough guys that are doing cruel actions to win a game, but it is much more. There is a certain art of football that is really hard to come by. You have to be very skilled and know the game very well to understand how it works. The little things in football is what can make a beautiful play or catch or tackle. Someones foot work could be so good that he dodges a tackle and gets a touchdown. My first reaction when I see one of those plays is “that was pretty” and we get hyped up when we see it. It’s also very beautiful when we win a hard fought game. If the score goes back and forth the whole game and we edge past to win by a point or two. We all go crazy and cheer and sometimes tears can come down your face because it could be one of the most beautiful things you’ve ever seen.

One Comment

  1. elishaemerson

    I love how you’ve connected our reading to football. Don’t be afraid to “go deep.” What roles do you think sports play in human life?

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